S Prasanna of S Guruviah Chetty & Sons, jewellers since 1930, says, “The government is business-friendly as the Prime Minister’s record in Gujarat shows. A simple thing like doing away with the requirement of getting attestation from the notary public has been a very good gesture.”

Preparing the Budget is definitely tough, he says, but the government should know its priorities. Transparency is important and the Budget should not play hide and seek — giving with one hand and taking with another.

Gradual reduction of customs duty on gold is one key demand. Acknowledging that it cannot be brought down to 2 per cent right away, Prasanna hopes for a calibrated reduction, from 10 per cent to, say, 6 per cent. He says, “The duty should be such that it should not be profitable for people to smuggle.”

He expects the Budget to moderate the customs levy on goods such as mobile phones. On the other hand, Prasanna advocates raising duty on goods such as rubber which are being dumped into the country.

Stop freebies

Prasanna wants moderation in the service tax. The 49-year-old also hopes that the government will accelerate the momentum towards the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which will do away with the plethora of taxes in the country. Stability and consistency in tax policies is key and rules should not be changed every year or so, he says. The infrastructure sector should be given a lot of thrust, Prasanna feels. So also defence, education, healthcare, rural development and inland waterways. The Budget should use the opportunity provided by falling commodity prices and stop freebies on products such as LPG, he says.

Importantly, the Budget focus should be more on implementation than announcements, Prasanna emphasises.

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